Expect more RCMP next May long weekend

Family event for Victoria Day may be in works as town ‘not going to tolerate what is going on’

The Victoria Day long weekend may be over for another year but
stakeholders are still talking about it and working on ways to put a stop to
the random violence and threatening atmosphere it has come to be known for.

The RCMP is planning on bringing in more resources next year
and is in discussions with its legal department about how firm a line they can
take with potential troublemakers.

It is also considering moving some of its officers off traffic
duty and onto the streets and into local parks as more and more young people
take the bus from the Lower Mainland to party in Whistler, rather than drive.

RCMP Staff Sgt. Steve LeClair would also like to see some sort
of family event introduced on the May long weekend to encourage families to
come and youths to party elsewhere.

“I plan on being here for the next four to five years and my
thoughts are that we change this weekend into something that can be enjoyed by
families without fear of people causing problems in the village,” he said.

“We are talking to our municipal partner about that… It is
something on the radar.”

Discussions on that front are at an early stage. In the
meantime LeClair said police are considering using the same sort of enforcement
they use for New Year’s Eve, where police can arrest confrontational people
they understand are likely to continue the behaviour.

“…So instead of just separating the factions and sending them
on their way only to have them start trouble again we will review and determine
if perhaps they can be arrested for causing disturbance, to prevent the
continuation of events.

“I firmly believe that that type of policing will assist the
peaceful public in enjoying the village more appropriately.”

At least one person, and possibly three, was stabbed after
being confronted by a group of young men in the village May 17. There were
several other reports of groups of young men provoking individuals.

Whistler is not alone in experiencing this type of problem. In
the last week police at English Bay in Vancouver had to use pepper spray and a
helicopter to help disperse 1,500 to 2,000 unruly people. In Penticton an
Ontario man was stabbed to death during a fight involving two groups of people
at a beach, and police had to be called in to break up rowdy behaviour in North
Vancouver.

In Whistler, local artist Chili Thom witnessed some of the
problems first hand. He was painting a mural in the skateboard park bowl when a
group of five men from the Lower Mainland began to harass him. Thom repeatedly
asked the men to tone down their noise, drinking and so on but over time the
group became more aggressive, eventually stealing some paint and refusing to
give it back.